Retrospective Film Review

Rear Window (1954) • 70 Years Later — curiosity, evil, and our voyeuristic humanity in Hitchcock’s masterpiece

A house and wheelchair-bound photographer, his fashion model girlfriend, and his visiting nurse spy on neighbours from his courtyard window.

What goes on behind shuttered windows? The home is supposed to be a sacred space, closed off to the prying eyes of an inquisitive world. The private lives of ordinary people may harbour standard embarrassments or shocking secrets, but we all have a right for such details to remain private. But then, why is it we conceal? And why do we look? In Rear Window, Hitchcock’s definitive masterpiece, we are asked both questions.

Life over the last six weeks has been exceedingly dull for L.B Jeffries (James Stewart). A professional photographer, he’s recovering from a broken leg sustained during an ill-advised shoot at a racetrack; his penchant for dangerous, thrilling situations frequently lands him in trouble, it would seem. Convalescing in his flat, he combats boredom by…